Collapsible plastic marble race game



April 23, 1968 H. R. JAFFE 3,379,440

COLLAPSIBLE PLASTIC MARBLE RACE GAME Filed Feb. 5, 1965 VENT 01?. H'. A ay M ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,379,440 COLLAPSIBLE PLASTIC MARBLE RACE GAME Herbert Roy .ialfe, 7 Country Drive, Piainview, N.Y. 11803 Filed Feb. 3, 1965, Ser. No. 430,106 3 Ciaims. (Ci. 273--86) The object of the present invention is to provide a game operable by two players through simultaneous marble movement by the players into raceways of undulating character, so that at the ends of the raceways the marbles may fall upon a board or boards having pockets or other designations for scoring. The raceway is molded flat of sufliciently flexible plastic, so that the forepart of the raceway may be manually elevated and held by an angularly bent rod, the rod being removable to lie flat within the assembly in shipping and storage.

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the raceway lying in flat position;

FIG. 2 is an isometric view showing the central part of the raceway elevated and held by the bent rod;

IG. 3 is a detailed section on the line 33, FIG. 2, looking in the direction of the arrows; and

FIG. 4 is a view in elevation and partial section on the line 44, FIG. 2, showing the post members under and integral with the front areas of the structure.

The raceway is an integral structure of plastic and hence molded in one piece as by injection molding. It consists of a central area, indicated at 1, joining the initial raceways so that they lie side by side under a pocket member 2 for holding two marbles 3. These marbles are removed by the players and placed on top of the raceway area 1. Being made of plastic, the central area may be elevated and held in that position by inserting the vertical section of rod 4 into the aperture of :1 lug 5, as shown in detail in FIGS. 3 and 4. From the standpoint of placement of the marbles in the raceways, the latter have an undulating form, each leading down to a curved area 6, and thence to a reversely curved area 7, from which the marble, as to each raceway, passes into a transverse area 8, thence into a curved area 9, thence into a reversely curved area 10, and down into a succeeding curved area 11, from which the marbles are passed to a horizontal area 12, so that they roll into the area encompassed by the raceway.

It will be seen that the raceways, except at the area 12, are bordered by flange elements to restrain the marbles from inadvertent discharge therefrom.

It will be seen that the various areas of the raceways are bordered by upstanding guide walls to hold the moving marbles against displacement. However, at the lowermost portion of the structure, the rapidly moving marbles do not require an inner guide wall. It is preferred 3,3734% Patented Apr. 23, 1968 that the discharge ends of the raceways section 12 be turned inwardly and slightly raised, so as to act as a minor brake in the discharge movement of the marbles. The lowermost area of the structure may be supported by a short post, as shown in FIGURE 4 at 14.

It will be understood that various modifications may be made in the form and arrangement of the elements constituting the embodiment as illustrated in the drawings without departure from the spirit of the invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Leters Patent is as follows:

1. A raceway game, comprised of two side-by-side integrally molded raceways of flexible plastic material, one raceway being a substantial mirror image of the other, said raceway game having substantially straight juxtaposed entrance sections and raceway sections removable support means for elevating the entrance sections and raceways to cause spheres placed thereon to gravitate to lower ends of said raceways, the configuration of the raceway sections being such that the entrance sections and raceway sections may be made to lie co-planarly when said support means is removed, said plastic material having suflicient flexibility to allow said entrance sections to assume said elevated and co-planar positions.

2. A raceway game constructed in accordance with claim 1, wherein said support means comprises a downwardly projecting post carried by the raceway at the entrance sections thereof, a bracket member having an end adapted to enter an aperture in said post, and being adapted to hold said entrance sections and raceways in elevated position, each raceway section having areas which are reversely curved and leading to a transversely extending raceway area merging into additional reversely curved areas, and thence to a discharge point.

3. A game raceway for marbles constructed in accordance with claim 1 in combination with a pocket member for marbles integral with the entrance sections of the raceways at the tops thereof, and relatively short posts depending from discharge areas of the raceways.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,662,162 3/1928 Nestor 273-86 2,000,808 5/1935 Williams 46-43 2,532,521 12/1950 Stair 46-43 2,726,869 12/1955 Schulte 4643 X 2,862,333 12/1958 Gardiol 4643 X FOREIGN PATENTS 803,519 1951 Germany.

ANTON O. OECHSLE, Primary Examiner.

M. R. PAGE, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A RACEWAY GAME, COMPRISED OF TWO SIDE-BY-SIDE INTEGRALLY MOLDED RACEWAYS OF FLEXIBLE PLASTIC MATERIAL, ONE RACEWAY BEING A SUBSTANTIAL MIRROR IMAGE OF THE OTHER, SAID RACEWAY GAME HAVING SUBSTANTIALLY STRAIGHT JUXTAPOSED ENTRANCE SECTIONS AND RACEWAY SECTIONS REMOVABLE SUPPORT MEANS FOR ELEVATING THE ENTRANCE SECTIONS AND RACEWAYS TO CAUSE SPHERES PLACED THEREON TO GRAVITATE TO LOWER ENDS OF SAID RACEWAYS, THE CONFIGURATION OF THE RACEWAY SECTIONS BEING SUCH THAT THE ENTRANCE SECTIONS AND RACEWAY SECTIONS MAY BE MADE TO LIE CO-PLANARLY WHEN SAID SUPPORT MEANS IS REMOVED, SAID PLASTIC MATERIAL HAVING SUFFICIENT FLEXIBILITY TO ALLOW SAID ENTRANCE SECTIONS TO ASSUME SAID ELEVATED AND CO-PLANAR POSITIONS. 